Friend to Animal Souls
by Claire Starsword
Summary: Stories of Lisanna learning her magic and befriending the animals she take over. Future chapters might not be in chronological order. This was inspired by Chapter 381 of the manga so beware of spoilers if you didn't read it yet.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: I thought I wouldn't write fanfics anymore since I have a lot of trouble writing, but this idea was in my mind for a while and I wanted to act on it before I lost motivation. I enjoyed making it so I hope you'll like it too.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Fairy Tail.**

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><p>This is the story of a young animal lover<br>full of smiles and hopes, a cute magical girl.  
>Wishing to spread happiness around<br>her magic wasn't just strength,  
>but also a way to befriend many different souls.<p>

The first one to lend her power was the cat.

* * *

><p>At the start, it was so that her sister didn't feel so lonely.<p>

A few days had passed since they had joined the Fairy Tail guild, and any hope Lisanna and her brother had that their sister would feel better about herself there was gone. Despite joining, she had made no attempt to befriend or even talk to the other members, and was also putting distance between her and her own siblings. The confident girl with a bad attitude and a hidden caring side they knew was almost gone. Now she was just a lonely figure hiding in a cloak ashamed of her own body.

Lisanna and Elfman knew they had to do something. They wouldn't let their most beloved person feel left out of the family. And so the younger sister brought up an idea. A vague, hopeful thought that had been born in the day she got that meaningful red mark on her shoulder, and was now clear in her mind.

While living in a quiet and isolated village, the siblings didn't have much contact with magic besides hearing the vague rumors about mages and beasts around the world. And when it came to their lives, it took away their home and their sister's happiness. So far, that power had only been painful to them.

But in the guild they saw a different side of it. Lisanna had met, right on her first day, the pink haired dragonslayer that, despite all loneliness, had pride in the magic connecting him and his father. She had seen the mages giving their all to become stronger every day and enjoying their jobs. Those people believed in the power of their hearts, and wanted nothing but to protect their friends with that. It was wonderful.

And if that magic could connect humans and dragons, if it could give all those people such great smiles, it would certainly unite their family again. It was with this in mind that Lisanna and Elfman asked the Master to teach them Take Over.

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><p>Soon, Lisanna found another reason to pursue that power.<p>

She had always loved animals, and was very good at getting closer to them without scaring them away. She would love to have the same body as them and understand them better. And she promised she wouldn't hurt them for this. Creatures normally resisted to be taken over, even if just partially, so most mages would fight and weaken them first. But, if they became close and understanding of the target instead, and if there were trust between them, the process wouldn't be so forceful. That was what Lisanna was trying to do. Every day, she would gather stray cats around the town and play with them for hours.

"What are you doing, Lisanna?" Natsu asked once, watching her sitting in the grass of Magnolia's South Gate Park, surrounded by the little felines. The girl had the feeling he had been observing the scene for a while, and finally decided to come and talk to her.

"I'm playing with these little guys." she didn't mention her magic as she didn't want anyone to know yet. She feared Mira would try to stop her if she heard about it. "I love cats, and when Mira-nee and Elf-nii-chan are not around, I go looking for some of them to play with. I never feel lonely with them."

"You mean they just follow you around? I thought they just ignored people. I've never seen so many cats in the same place." There were at least ten of the felines around the girl, and they seemed very comfortable. One of them, with grey fur and black stripes, even climbed her legs and sat on her lap, wanting to be petted.

"Yeah, it's hard to explain, but I think they just like me." She shrugged. "It has always been like this."

"That's weird."

"Hey, don't say it like that, that's mean!" the girl pouted. "Don't you want to play with them too? They can be great friends!"

"Friends..." the boy became thoughtful. "Do you really like them so much?" Lisanna nodded.

"Yup! And I want them to think of me like that, too! If we become friends, we can share our strength, right?"

"I guess so... Yeah, that sounds nice!" he replied, and Lisanna felt relieved someone else thought like her, even if he didn't know she was talking about her magic. While she still didn't make much progress (she could swear she got claws at some point, but they disappear quickly and never came back again), she certainly wouldn't give up just yet.

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><p>"Aaahh... I give up..."<p>

It had been a week since she had that talk with Natsu, and Lisanna was lying disheartened at her bed. She had made absolutely no progress besides getting some temporary patches of fur at times, and didn't know what to do. She tried to get advice from the books at the guild, but they sounded too complicated. And Master had said the basics he explained at the start should be enough for her now.

Everything looked pretty hopeless now, and she cried. She always hated studying, and should've known from the start she couldn't learn something so hard by herself. Elfman was also failing at his magic, so she couldn't ask for tips, and Mira wouldn't be of help too, as troubled as she was with her own power. Lisanna had no one to run to, and it pained her that she was so useless alone. She was losing hope.

A low sound of something light hitting the ground reminded her that she wasn't the only one in the room. The grey cat she played with in the park had become closer to her than the others at some point, and even though she didn't want to give her family the trouble of caring for a pet –they had just settled in the town and there were lots of other stuff to worry about– she did brought it home and gave it some food at times. She even practiced her take over in it hiding in her room like now.

Lisanna got up and picked up the thing the cat had pushed off the bed while moving around. It was a picture book she liked very much. It was very colorful and always made her feel better at hard times. The last days she had looked at it a lot.

The cat meowed as she sat in the bed again. She quickly wiped her tears and smiled at it.

"Oh, you want to know what's this?" Lisanna looked softly at the book's cover. "I never showed it to you, right? It's my favorite picture book; Mira-nee gave it to me a long time ago. It's about a magical girl, and she has a lot of weird creatures as friends, and they get in a lot of trouble but always save everyone in the end." Her expression became sad again. "I wanted to be like her, you know. I wanted to transform into a lot of colorful animals and make everyone happy."

The cat climbed up to her lap, and she started petting it.

"Say, was I annoying you guys all this time? I thought we could become friends and share our power, but was I still forcing you to stay around? Because I didn't want to, I didn't want to hurt anyone. All I wanted was to make Mira-nee happy..."

She flipped through the book, not really paying attention to the story she knew by heart now. She just admired the colorful pictures, where the heroine was smiling and winking and making cute poses while shining with magic.

"Do you think anyone has a pretty magic like that? Everyone in the guild has cool and different magics, so I wonder if there's one where you shine like that. It would be fun!"

She got up and made mimicked some poses from the magical girl. Eventually she started to make her own too, saying funny things like 'I'm the magical girl of animal souls, Lisanna!', and 'This is my cute and shining magic! Animal Soul!'

"Yes, I love these animals with all my heart, and I'll protect everyone with their power! I can help Mira-nee and Elf-nii-chan with them, I believe in this!"

And then Lisanna stopped in the middle of her next pose, staring at her hands. They were entirely covered by grey fur, and had big claws in it.

"Ah! But I wasn't even trying to..." she exclaimed surprised, looking at how perfect the paws looked. It was better than any of her attempts, but she didn't even notice she had used magical power at that. Was she too caught up in her fantasies?

"That's actually kind of embarrassing..." she sure hoped her siblings were still out home and hadn't heard her saying all that stuff before. "Though it did cheer me up a bit. Hey, cat, let's try it again!"

Lisanna touched the cat gently, and pushed her magical power into it like she was taught to. Already used to it and being pretty attached to the girl, the animal looked relaxed, and she was satisfied she at least manage to learn how to not hurt them like this.

"Alright! I better not transform much yet, I'll just try changing my arms too." She then chanted. "I love these cats, and I'm sure I can take over them! Animal Soul!"

But nothing happened. And after releasing her power carelessly like that, her paws began to fade away.

"Waaahh! No! I was doing so well, I can't fail again!" She cried, and at last managed to keep the left paw intact. She sighed. "I guess this is better than nothing. But what made it work before, then? I was motivated at both times!"

Lisanna inspected her left paw, and eventually looked at the rest of her arm too, stopping at the mark at her shoulder.

"Master said magic comes from the heart... am I not wishing enough for this?" the thought hurt her deeply. "That's not right, I really want to learn magic. And I really love my family, and the animals, even the people of the guild I've just met... And even so... I'm..."

"I'm still worse than them, right?"

She had been disappointed when she saw Elfman was just as bad as her in magic. She thought he would be great at it, and help her when she needed it, like always. She could always count on her siblings for that. She was always worried to hurt the cats while training. She was always hiding, because if Mira prohibited her from learning magic she surely wouldn't defy her.

Despite looking confident, Lisanna didn't believe in herself to do things alone. She was no heroine, just the little sister in the sidelines. The people she looked up to wouldn't be like that. She thought of the heroine in the book, always leading her friends in adventures. She thought of Natsu, with all the pride he had in his magic. She thought of her sister, brave enough to face a demon in order to protect everyone.

Her idols would never give up when it came to the people they loved, no matter how worried they were.

"And I might not be as good as them, but... I still want to see this to the end! It was my idea, after all!"

Lisanna closed her eyes, and extended her arms to the side, concentrating. While trying to gather the rest of her magical power, her main focus was the feelings running through her. Her heart.

"I want to see Mira-nee smiling again... I want to protect her and Elf-nii-chan...I don't want to stay behind, and shy away from the risks... I want to stand with them... "

"Even though all living beings die one day, even though I will die one day... Until that, I want to make everyone happy! It doesn't matter if they're humans or animals or demons... they can still be connected by their souls!"

Had Lisanna opened her eyes at that time, she would've seen her body shining beautifully with her own magic.

Instead, she turned around, in a free and graceful movement.

"Take Over: Animal Soul!"

And her body was now a cute cat-human hybrid.

She could feel the new ears twitching on top of her head. The sensitive nose and the whiskers. The tail dancing on her back. The warm fur covering her legs and arms, and the four paws that felt just as natural as her human hands and feet.

"I-I..." She was speechless. "This is so great! Yay!" She jumped and danced around in celebration. Then she picked up the cat that was still in the room and hugged it.

"Thank you, thank you! We'll keep playing tomorrow and every other day too! And I'll bring lots of food for you and your friends!" Then her expression softened. "We'll all grow up and get stronger together, right?"

Her eyes met the cat's, and she felt she could understand its feelings. It liked her. It was curious. It would always stick around because it was having fun. She put it in the bed again.

"I can't wait to show this to Mira-nee! She'll be so happy to know she's not alone anymore!" She smiled and once again admired her new body. That's when she finally noticed a small problem.

While her arms and legs were covered by the grey, striped fur, the rest of her body wasn't. And despite that, her clothes were gone too. She was completely exposed.

"Kyaaaaaa!" The girl shrieked. "T-that happens too? Cat, I still need more of your fur, please!" She reached for the cat, despite feeling it wouldn't help much. She had already realized that she had taken over that cat long ago during her training, and it was her lack of confidence and experience that didn't let her use its body. If she wasn't fully covered it was probably her own mistake.

And besides, the cat wouldn't be of help anyway as it was fleeing through the window.

"Hey, don't ignore me like this, that's mean!" And she quickly covered herself in her blankets instead and whined. "Uwah... Even a bikini would already be better than this... I wonder if my clothes will come back when I turn this off..."

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><p>With that start, the girl learned important things<br>but also had light hearted fun  
>and engraved it in the bikini she used later on.<br>After all, though wise and mysterious,  
>cats are also very mischievous and pranksters.<br>But looking back, don't you laugh off the things they do?


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Thanks to everyone who read, reviewed, faved and/or followed this story, I appreciate the support. And sorry for the delay with this one.**

**The initial idea for this chapter is pretty much what inspired me to start this fanfic in the first place, yet writing it was harder than I thought, and I'm not sure if it went the way I wanted it to. But beating myself up for this won't bring me anywhere so I'll just it leave it for you guys to judge. Hope you'll enjoy it.**

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><p>A cute magical girl that spreads happiness.<br>To be like that, she would be always smiling.  
>Her sad thoughts about the past,<br>and her musings on death,  
>were long locked away so as to not worry anyone.<p>

The first one to listen to them was the pig.

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><p>It was a beautiful sunny day and Lisanna was on a farm keeping a sick pig company.<p>

One week had passed since she had learned her first take-over, but since Elfman was still working on his she had decided not to show it to her sister yet. After all, they were doing this for the sake of uniting the family once more and it would make no sense to leave her brother out of the reveal. So she would wait until he was also ready and surprise Mira together.

And so she had spent half the week helping Elfman train and playing with the kids of the guild she had already befriended, until she thought it would be nice to practice her magic a bit more and started looking for other animals she could take over. Somehow that had led her to a small farm in the outskirts of town, and though at the start the owner looked displeased with the little girl and her strange interest in his animals, he still let her wander around when she asked.

"What can I do?" he had said grumpily. "The way you Fairy Tail kids are, you're probably going to blow up stuff and come in anyway. Though you're polite enough to ask, and I never saw your face there before, so maybe there's still some hope for you. Try not to mess things up, okay? That people could use a new member with some common sense."

Lisanna thought his opinion about the guild was pretty rude, but she had been around long enough to know how destructive her fellow comrades could be, and how a few troublesome ones –Natsu was the first to come to mind- would pick fights and carelessly use their magic even around the town. Most of the citizens seemed to ignore and even laugh off their antics, but a few others weren't so carefree about them.

However it didn't take long for the girl to prove she wasn't going to cause trouble, and by the end of the day she was even helping to take care of the animals with her natural talent of getting close to them. While doing that, at some point she came to know of the little pig that had fallen sick not long ago. Despite the treatment it was receiving it still was in a bad shape.

"Are you sure you're going to stay there?" the owner had asked after noticing she was quietly standing next to the sick animal for a while. "That pig is not getting better anytime soon, if you want to play, you should check the others."

"It's alright, I already played with lots of the animals here." she replied with a smile. "This one is probably lonely from resting here all by himself, so I'm going to keep him company a bit."

The farmer stood there awkwardly for a bit. Why were those magic kids so weird? If that girl liked animals shouldn't her be bothering her parents to buy a dog or something? Why was she coming here and getting attached to a sick pig of all things? For all he knew that pig could end dying soon, and the last thing he wanted was to have to comfort a child he barely knew about her cute and loved animal dying.

He sighed. It was his fault for letting her come in the first place. Damn kids and their disarming yet troublesome innocence. Despite being a harsh and tough man he didn't want to kick the girl out after letting her in and using her help, but still...

"Honestly kid, you might be more grown up that you look, hanging around the town all by yourself, but you're still too young to be worrying about sick animals like this. It's already pretty sad when this happens with your own pets, so don't go looking for this kind of trouble with other people."

"I'm sorry." she said with a low voice. She had a bad feeling about what this talk would lead to. "Am I being creepy doing this?"

"Creepy? Nah, I wasn't thinking of it like that. It's more like you're too kind for your own good. If the pig gets worse, you'll end up feeling bad too."

"So you're worried he might die soon?" The man blinked a few times, surprised. She had said it so calm and naturally it was kind of scary. Was that just a spontaneous thought of a kid, or was it in her mind since the start?

"So, did you really go through this with a pet before?"

"I can't say they were really my pets, but I always liked to play with all the animals I could find around my old home. And many of them died as the years passed. I mean, they had no owner to take care of them, and I couldn't do much to help, so it was even harder for them." It was pitiful, but the girl seemed to accept things in such a mature way that the farmer could only keep staring at her with newfound respect.

"I'm sorry I'm talking about this sad stuff though, I didn't mean to do it." she quickly apologized. "We should be hoping for your pig to get better, right? After all, you're taking good care of him, so he'll be fine!"

"Yeah yeah, sure." He had the feeling she didn't really had all that hope, but was thankful for the less depressing mood anyway. "You should stay with it a bit longer then, it will feel better with a friend like you." And he left the girl alone with the animal.

A pale white-haired child that comes out of nowhere, stays around sick animals and peacefully talks about death... Yes, she was right, that was kind of creepy. Yet it was also so honest and gentle he couldn't think of it as a bad thing.

As soon as the farmer left her Lisanna began to deeply regret the conversation they had. She promised herself long ago she wouldn't go talking about death like that, as it only made people sad, yet she had rambled about it once again. Though the man was the one who started it, in a sense. He danced around the subject as he could, but it was clear he just wanted to protect her from whatever sadness could come next. Which was very kind of him, really, but she was actually used to this now.

She closed her eyes and let some very old memories replay in her mind.

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><p>"Died?"<p>

"Y-yeah. You know, that stray cat you used to play with..." A young Mirajane said, trying to choose the words carefully. "The villagers found it dead today in the morning." She looked sadly at her little sister. "I'm sorry, Lisanna. I really didn't want that to happen to you, but it's... it's..." She stuttered for a bit. Even though she tried her best to be a reliable older sister she was still a child too. How was she supposed to explain death to another kid? "It's how the world works, I guess. It's really hard to explain, I'm sorry."

Lisanna awkwardly petted her big sister's head, feeling sad for her. Why was she feeling guilty if she had done nothing wrong?

"It's alright, Mira-nee, it's alright. Can we see her grave?"

"A grave?"

"Yes, when you die, you get a grave, right? The church has lots of graves for the people who died."

"So you want to make a grave for the cat?" The older sister smiled at the idea. "That's not bad. Let's call Elfman to help too, and find a good place for it!"

And thus began Lisanna's tradition of making graves for all the animals she lost along the years. And during all those times, there was a clear thought going through her head.

'As long as you remember someone, they'll live in your heart forever.' Did she hear that phrase somewhere, or thought it herself at some point? She couldn't remember, but it was a comforting thought anyway, and she dedicated herself to it. Every grave she made was so people could remember her dead friends, and she held dear to every memory of them.

She already couldn't remember her parents, so she would at least make sure to never forget her friends.

Lisanna never talked to her siblings about that, though. Unlike her, they were a bit older when their parents died and still had a few memories of them, so the subject was more painful for them and Lisanna avoided talking about it so as to not make them sad. All her thoughts on the matter were kept well hidden in her heart.

Thus, she was eager to talk about them to someone else, and took the chances she had whenever other kids of the village would approach her at a grave to see what she was doing. Unfortunately, that wasn't well accepted by most people, and it didn't take long for her to hear all kinds of gossip going around the place.

"That kid's kinda creepy, you know."

"I think she means well. Kids are so innocent about those things it comes off as creepy sometimes."

"I don't want my children to hang with someone that keep talking about such things!"

"It's probably because they lost their parents at such a young age..."

"Is she cursed or something? I always thought that family would be trouble for us one day."

"Well, all living beings do die one day, she's not telling lies there. Maybe it's your kids that need to grow up some more."

"Still, with those graves around... it's kinda creepy."

Creepy. Creepy creepy creepy. If Lisanna had to choose her most hated word, that would probably be it. And eventually, she gave up on opening up to anyone. She didn't want trouble with the villagers, and didn't want her siblings to get involved in the mess. She stopped talking to the other kids, stopped trying to know more of her parents, and stopped making everyone depressed with her weird accepting thoughts. After all, what she wanted the most was to see people happy.

And yet, she never stopped making those graves. She did make them in more hidden places from that moment on, but they were still there. Because her friends still deserved to be remembered and die peacefully too.

All living things die one day, it was unavoidable. But as long as you remember them, they will live in your heart forever. That was one of her most important beliefs, and she would keep it, even if she couldn't talk about it to anyone.

Lisanna snapped out of her reminiscing and came back to the present as she noticed the sun was almost setting.

"Ah, I better go home by now!" she turned to the pig at her side, staring at her with kind yet tired eyes. "I'll try to come again later, okay? I hope you get better soon!" And with a smile, she left.

Yet, on the way home, she was still deep in thought about a lot of things.

She had long hidden an important belief deep inside her heart so as to not hurt anyone.

Yet, didn't she realize while learning magic that she needed to be more confident and stand up for herself? Weren't her feelings her true strength?

It seemed like time to take another step forward.

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><p>Days later, the lonely pig was at its deathbed. Lisanna had visited it every day, and was quite surprised the farmer let her. The man was rude sometimes, but he had understood and respected her bond with the animal despite barely knowing her, and she was very thankful for that.<p>

The girl gently touched the animal lying of front of her.

"It's kind of sad that we never met when you were healthy... but I'm sure you looked great then. You've been a nice company in these days, you listened to a lot of silly stuff I said, and you made me remember very important things too. So thank you for everything."

"You're going to be alright now, so don't be scared, okay? Everyone dies one day, but I'll make sure no one forgets you. And this time, it won't be just with a grave," She readied her magic. "I'll carry on the strength you had at your better days, for all my life. Is that fine with you?"

A clear sunny sky, a beautiful magical glow, some tears and the death of a pig. All these things marked Lisanna's first Full-Body Take Over.

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><p>"So that's what your magic was in the first place?"<p>

Lisanna and the farmer were standing next to the grave they had just made for the departed pig. After taking over the animal, the girl had planned to just go away, leave the man to deal with the body in whichever way he wanted, and make the grave somewhere else outside. After all, she wasn't very sure a farmer would be sentimental about every single animal that died in his property, and she had bothered the man enough already.

Yet it turned that he had heard everything she said to the pig before, and decided that if she really cared to make a grave he could go along. That, and he also wanted to know why the hell the girl started to shine for a moment during all that.

He complained the whole time about how it was his fault for letting a sentimental kid walk around his property in the first place, and how he should be glad he didn't get worse troubles, and at the same time he kept on saying he enjoyed her company during those days. Lisanna thought he was a very odd but fun person.

After finished the grave, Lisanna explained her magic to him and demonstrated by turning into her new pig form. She asked the Master days before if it was okay to take over a sick creature, and he told her it was fine. The same way the magic could adapt the creatures' size and features to fit those of the user, it also mirrored her health condition.

"That's exactly how it looked before getting sick. I mean, except by the white hair there, that's really weird, you know. You look like its ghost or something."

"I guess you're right..." she went back to her human form and smiled sadly."I guess that makes it pretty creepy then."

"Yeah, you're very creepy." He answered. "But I guess the world is also kind of creepy, so you know what? Just stay as you are. And keep talking those mature things about death and being kind to every fluffy thing that crosses your way. You're going to be a good woman when you grow up."

The girl felt so flattered she didn't know how to respond at all, and he quickly changed the subject.

"But you should've told all you wanted was to copy my animals! Now I finally get what was going on!"

"Well, I did say my magic had to do with them... Sorry for not explaining more."

"Nah, I shouldn't have let you come in the first place! I'm getting too soft around children to let them pass over me like this!"

He stood silent for a moment , then spoke again.

"I understand nothing about raising a child, and hell I know what I'll do in a few months..." Lisanna blinked. She remembered seeing the man's wife a few times, and indeed, the woman was pregnant, but he didn't speak much on the subject and she didn't want to ask of it. "But you kids are smarter and deeper that we give credit for, huh?"

"Did you really mean all that? That you'll never forget all your little dead friends?"

For a moment, Lisanna just wanted to let out all her feelings. To tell of her deceased parents she never knew of, to talk of the graves she made at her villages and the people she upset, to tell of all the lonely thoughts she had on the matter while trying to accept the loss of her animal friends, and to show how peaceful she was now with the answer she had found. Because she felt that that man, and also all of her new friends at Fairy Tail, and probably even her siblings if she hadn't avoided the subject so much, would probably listen to, understand and support her in whatever she said as long as she said it with her heart.

But after hiding all of those feelings for so long, there was no way she would let it all out so easily. And so her answer was only a small part of all she wanted to say.

"I would love to. Because they make me happy, and I'm sure that as long as they live in my heart, I'll be strong enough to spread that happiness around!"

"Deep. So you better keep working on that. And if possible, not here, because it's getting late and I don't want to get in trouble with your family if they think I kidnapped you or something."

The girl panicked when she realized what time it was.

"Aaaaaahhhhh! I'm late to meet Elf-nii-chan! And today is the day we'll show Mira-nee our magic!"

She dashed away at the best speed she could, and the man could only smile and stare at the kid he thought to be so weird. If she wanted her friends to be never forgotten she was doing a good job, because he would never forget the sick pig that led him to meet such an odd girl.

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><p>Not all of the girl's thoughts were happy,<br>but they were important beliefs all the same,  
>and helped her in her way.<br>How would she react if she knew back then,  
>people would soon make more than one grave for her?<br>Despite all, she would probably be touched by their care.


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: As always, thanks to everyone who read, reviewed, followed and faved this story. I really appreciate it!**

**This chapter took all this time to be written since I didn't have a clear idea of what to do. Because of that, it's the shortest chapter so far, but I kinda like how it turned out. Hope you'll enjoy it too!**

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><p>Happiness is not just the joy of playing around,<br>but also the peace of a quiet rest afterwards.  
>Thus, the magical girl wished<br>to give shelter and a warm embrace  
>to whomever in need of them one day.<p>

The one to give her a way to do that was the rabbit.

* * *

><p>Mirajane, Lisanna and Elfman had just finished their first mission together and were now going back to the guild. Or at least, they would be, if not for a small problem along the way.<p>

To be more exact, it had started to rain. A lot. And the siblings would be in big trouble if the youngest one hadn't found a rather odd shelter.

"Lisanna, are you sure it's safe to enter here?" Mira asked carefully while passing through the big entrance of a straw-covered burrow.

"It's alright, it's alright! It's an abandoned nest, I've been here bef-" Lisanna's answer was cut short as she was shocked by the sight in front of her. "Whoa! You're grown so much!"

At first, Mira and Elfman had no idea of who she was talking to, but then they realized they weren't the only ones there.

Next to Lisanna, occupying most of the space in the nest, was a giant rabbit with purple fur, with some bright green parts around the mouth and on the feet, and a red and white circle around the neck. Basically, it was a very weird sight, and Mira reacted accordingly:

"How the hell a rabbit gets this big?!"

"Is this the same rabbit from that time, Lisanna?" Elfman asked, and then Mira remembered that it wasn't the first time she had seen a rabbit of abnormal size.

She had chosen the mission they just completed because it was in a place they already knew, as they had passed through it during their travels before joining the guild. And at that time, Lisanna had spent some days playing with a similar rabbit that had decided to follow them. She even got lost at some point, and now Mira had a good guess of where she was at that time.

"You mean you were hiding in this nest when you got lost at that time? It was also raining back then." She looked for confirmation, and her little sister nodded.

"Yup!" She pointed at the rabbit. "At that time, she wasn't so big yet, but since the nest was this size already I thought she would grow up eventually. I didn't know that would happen so fast though! I guess this is a very special kind of rabbit!"

"Are you sure it's a rabbit, though?" Mira asked. "This is sounding more like a magical creature."

"I don't think so, sister." Elfman said. "We've seen a lot of strange animals since we left the village. I think they are normal, they just didn't live around our old home."

"Yeah, I heard some people at the guild saying that are lots of different animals at Magnolia's East Forest, for example!" Lisanna added. "I wanted to see them, but there are also beasts there, so I didn't want to go alone."

"Okay, okay, I get." Mira sighed. She was still getting used to living in a big town as mages, and still had to accept the weirdness around. But she felt she could trust her sister's talent with animals there, especially now that there was magic involved in it too."If you really think we can trust your friend here then it's alright for now. I wish this damn rain would just stop, though."

Lisanna said nothing in return, she just smiled. Ever since Mira told her where their mission was, she had hoped to meet her furry friend again, and now it was finally happening. The girl closed her eyes, tired, and snuggled next to the rabbit, feeling its warm and soft fur. She was feeling cold due to being caught in the rain before, but was sure that now she would be fine.

After all, nests are a place of motherly warmth.

* * *

><p>The first time Lisanna met that rabbit, she didn't mind the odd colors it had. If anything, she found them to be refreshing. Because she and her siblings were completely lost, under cloudy gray skies, Mira hiding in a dark cloak and everything around them looking pale, gloomy and scary, but the vivid fur of that animal made her feel a bit better. It was like it had reminded her that the world still hadn't completely lost its colors.<p>

And so she had quickly befriended the big rabbit that was almost her size, and it eventually decided to follow her around, and while her siblings were worried about that at first, they knew how their little sister could get attached to animals and didn't want to hurt her feelings sending her new friend away. They spent a few days trying to find their way out of those woods, and during that there was a moment where Lisanna and her furry companion got separated from the others. It was then that she found the burrow.

At first, the rabbit looked hesitating, and Lisanna got worried, thinking they had found a beast or something like that, given how big the burrow's entrance was. But then her animal friend started sniffing the grass around.

"Are you looking for something?" she asked, but obviously got no answer. However, when the animal finally stopped sniffing around, she felt it was disappointed. But before she could wonder more about it, she felt the first drops of rain.

"Oh no! Now it's going to rain?" And she quickly followed her friend that had already taken cover inside the nest. "We can't keep looking for Mira-nee and Elf-nii-chan like this..." Her eyes got teary. "I hope they are fine... I want to find them soon..."

Feeling hopeless, Lisanna sat down in the nest's floor, the rabbit watching her with curious eyes. Feeling that the animal was a bit nervous, she started to pet it.

"Sorry if I'm worrying you, I'm fine, okay?" the girl wiped away her tears, and then she noticed small colorful bits of something in the floor. Looking closely, she noticed it was fur. Purple, green and red fur, the same colors of the rabbit.

"Is this your home? It's pretty big for only you..." she looked at the high ceiling. "Could it be your mother was an even bigger rabbit? I can't imagine that!" she paused for a while, and then continued with a softer expression. "She must have been a really great mom, to make a comfy nest like this for you."

Lisanna sighed, deep in thought. While she had never felt lonely because of her siblings, she didn't know what it was to have parents and was always amazed by displays of motherly and fatherly love.

"You know, I wish I could do these things too." she confessed. "I mean, to build a warm and cozy nest, where everyone can rest at when they need. That way, we wouldn't need to keep wandering like we're doing. I'm sure Mira-nee and Elf-nii-chan would be happy. And then, when I get married, I would be able to make a home for my children too, don't you think it would be wonderful? I wonder how the person I'd marry would be like, though..."

And she kept daydreaming about her future life as a loving wife. Soon, the rain stopped, and the rabbit dashed to the outside. Lisanna didn't blame it for not wanting to stay on the burrow for long. It must have been raised there by its mother along other rabbits, but now there was clearly no one else there. It must be lonely to see your old home completely abandoned.

Once again looking for her siblings, she found even more abandoned nests. Whichever rabbits were raised there were probably living in another place now. That would explain why she met her furry friend in a different place of the woods. She wondered if she would find the others.

Eventually, she found Mirajane and Elfman again, and soon they found the exit of those gloomy woods. That also meant Lisanna had to say goodbye to the rabbit. But before leaving, she thought she had seen flashes of other bright colors between the trees, and hoped those were the other rabbits. She didn't want her friend to be alone.

They wouldn't see each other again so soon, but the wish to bring warmth and color to others' lives would stay on her mind for a long time.

* * *

><p>"Lisanna. Hey, wake up."<p>

Lisanna opened her eyes to the sound of Elfman calling her. It seemed like she had fallen asleep on the giant rabbit's soft fur.

"Huh? Anything happened, Elf-nii-chan?" She asked, still a bit drowsy.

"The rain has finally stopped, it seems. And sister wants to get back on the road right away."

"Of course I want to get back soon!" Mira said, already outside the nest. "Do you want that old man to think we failed right at our first mission? No way! And it's about time I put that armor head in her place too!"

"You shouldn't be picking rivals already, Mira-nee..." Lisanna quietly pointed out, already knowing her sister wouldn't listen. After what they went through the last months it was great to see Mira with her usual energy and personality back, but her bad attitude could be troublesome sometimes. Especially when she decided to pick fights for no reason, and recently the guild's resident armored mage, Erza Scarlet, had become her number one target.

And so Lisanna and Elfman followed their sister to the outside. The giant rabbit came soon after them, once again anxious to get away from the old nest.

"You're so grown up now, but it seems you still haven't found a new home yet..." Lisanna said softly. "It's alright! I'm sure you'll have a great place one day."

"What are talking about, Lisanna?" Mira asked. "I thought we were using the rabbit's nest." the little girl shook her head.

"Like I said before, this is an abandoned nest. I think she was raised here, but she can't stay here forever. Her mother is no longer here, and she is all grown up, so she have to make a new home somewhere and raise a lot of lovely babies one day! But before that... " Her expression became soft again, and she approached the animal. "...I have something to ask you. Do you remember what I said back then? That I wished I could make nests like you? I still feel like that. I want to give shelter to people when they need it, and to be as colorful as you so that people don't feel gloomy! And now I finally have the power to do that."

She hugged the giant rabbit.

"Will you help me?"

Activating her magic, Lisanna felt all the time she spent with that friend running through her mind. Even if she wasn't a mage back then, those memories were precious to her, and she was sure the spell would feel that connection and work just fine. After all, magic comes from the heart.

"Take Over: Animal Soul!"

"I'm never gonna get used to how big those are." Mira said, looking at her sister's new form. She was now almost identical to her rabbit friend, except for the small bit of fur in her head that resembled her hairstyle, the blue eyes, and the hands, that still looked mostly human despite being purple.

"It seems it worked just fine though!" Lisanna celebrated, and then returned to her human form. "Thank you, rabbit, thank you very much!"

Despite being startled by the girl's sudden transformations, the rabbit still looked warmly at her before finally leaving the place. Lisanna waved goodbye.

"Bye bye! Have fun with your friends!"

"So, can we get going now?" Mirajane said, after the rabbit was out of sight. "After all, we have to pay a visit to the East Forest later too. You don't want the weird animals waiting, do you?" It took Lisanna a second to remember of the talk they had earlier, and she jumped in joy when she understood.

"You're going with me there, Mira-nee?"

"Of course, we're all going!" Elfman replied. "After all, there are beasts there, so maybe I can improve my magic there too."

"Yeah, and it doesn't hurt to know the place. I mean, we live in Magnolia now, don't we?"

"Yay!" Lisanna celebrated. "I can't wait to see what we'll find there! Do you think there will be giant cats? Or maybe really colorful birds, that would be pretty too!"

And she kept rambling, and though her siblings couldn't fully understand her excitement about the weird animals, they joined the fun too, throwing in their own ideas of strange creatures at times. They were so upbeat it was hard to believe they were in the same gloomy place they crossed at the past, but things were all very different now that they had a home to return to.

* * *

><p>Even if nests have to be left one day,<br>if they were filled with love, they'll never disappear  
>and if you're in need, you might find them once again.<br>A reliable, warm shelter like that,  
>colorful even in the darkest rainy days;<br>That's all the girl wished to leave behind one day.


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: This chapter was a pain to write because I knew exactly how it should start and end, but had no idea of what to do in the middle. That's why the plot might look a bit rushed or weak. On the flip side though, while writing the ending I had a silly smile in my face the whole time, so I'm sure that part is good.**

**Thanks to all who reviewed, followed and/or faved. And I'm sorry you had to wait all this time for an update. So let me stop rambling and get this started. Enjoy.**

* * *

><p>The magical girl wanted a lucky charm,<br>a shining magic to bring happiness.  
>But when too focused in a search,<br>you might lose sight of the other things in your way  
>and the other paths you can take.<p>

The ones to teach her that were the birds.

* * *

><p>"An egg! They have an egg!"<p>

From somewhere under the trees of Magnolia's East Forest, Lisanna grinned happily. It was the first time she visited the place with her siblings, and was enjoying that very much. Just a moment ago she had got separated from her family a bit while following a bird to its nest and was now observing it, keeping some distance so as to not disturb the animals there.

She turned around when hearing a flapping sound at her side, but it had nothing to do with the nest she was looking at. It was a little green bird she had met right when she entered the forest. Compared to all the weird animals there, it looked pretty normal, and she didn't pay much attention to it. But it seemed to had taken a liking to her, and she wondered for how long it had been following her around.

The little bird landed in her shoulder, and she smiled silently at it, before turning to face the nest again.

The birds there were the most beautiful she had ever seen. They were small, gracious, and covered in shining blue feathers that made them look like precious gems.

"I wonder if they are what people call 'blue birds of happiness'." Lisanna sighed. The rare shining animals did look like good omens, and she would love to become like them, but she didn't want to disturb them taking care of their egg, and so far hadn't got to chance to approach, less take over them.

That problem was solved quickly though, as one of the birds flew away, leaving the other to warm up the egg. Lisanna followed it, the little green bird right behind her.

* * *

><p>"...I think we're going a bit too deep into this forest..." Lisanna whispered, worried.<p>

The blue bird was still flying from tree to tree, and Lisanna had no idea of where it was going, nor did she manage to reach it once. And now she was worried of getting lost. But she didn't want to give up on her chase. By taking over that bird, she would become a symbol of happiness just like it, and that was everything she could wish for. And thus she continued to walk further into the forest.

Thankfully, she didn't have to walk for long, as the blue bird finally decided to stop, landing on a nearby tree. After looking at it for a while and confirming that it wasn't moving from there anytime soon, Lisanna started to think how she could get close to it without hurting it or scaring it away.

"Most animals like coming close to me, but this one's been flying away all this time so I don't think he trusts me much yet. He doesn't seem to mind me being here now, though. I wonder if he would answer to my voice." She faced the bird and called softly. "Hey, birdie, am I bothering you? I've been following you for a while now, and I wish we could be friends. You're a very pretty bird!"

The blue bird stared curiously at her, and then moved away.

"Oh." She frowned, disappointed. "I guess I should have kept quiet." Getting that bird to trust her was turning out to be a very hard task.

But then she noticed something weird. The bird seemed nervous and wary now, but that had nothing to do with her. It wasn't even looking at her anymore, instead it looked into the opposite direction, the direction it had been flying to until now.

At the same time, the little green bird that had quietly followed Lisanna the whole time started to chirp and frantically flap its wings in front of her, as if trying to get her attention.

"Uh? You're also upset now? What's wrong with you two?" The girl asked, getting worried. The green bird flew to the opposite direction the blue bird was going to, landed in a nearby tree, and chirped loudly, staring intently at Lisanna.

"That's the path where we came from just now..." she mumbled, and then had an insight. "Wait, do you want us to go back? Is it dange-"

Her suspicious were confirmed before she could voice them. Heavy footsteps were coming from the depths of the forest, and soon came a beast, a monkey-like creature with green fur, purple skin, and a wide smile.

"I thought I had heard some noise around here!" the beast said. "Finally I found you, you damn bird!"

"I-it speaks!?" Lisanna was quite shocked. She hadn't met many magical beasts in her life, and didn't think they could spoke. The creature looked at her for the first time.

"So it's you that was making noise here. Tch, just a human. Go away, all I want is the bird." And it turned to the blue animal. "Now, lead me to your delicious egg!"

The shining bird flapped its wings a few times right in front of the beast, and then flew away, the predator following it right away.

"Hey, leave him alone!" Lisanna protested, annoying the monster. It grabbed a branch from a nearby tree, and threw at her.

"Eeeeeeeek!" the girl shrieked and quickly jumped to the side trying to dodge the attack. She managed to avoid it, but at the end of the hasty movement lost her balance and tripped, falling to the ground.

For a moment, it seemed like the beast wanted to go in her direction and finish her off, but the blue bird flew in front of it yet again, determined to get its full attention, which wasn't so hard with those dazzling shiny feathers. And so the predator and prey resumed their chase. This time, Lisanna didn't interrupt them, because she didn't know how she could help, and also because she had the impression the bird wanted to be followed.

Her leg hurt and she dragged herself to the cover of the trees behind her. The green bird, which had been noisy and restless through the whole incident, flew up to her, and she gently run a finger through its little head.

"Sorry. I worried you, didn't I?" she apologized. "You tried to warn me, I should have hidden myself here with you when I had the chance. I just wanted to help, but I'm not strong enough to fight a beast by myself. I shouldn't have gone away from Mira-nee like this. She must be worried about me."

She gave a last look to the direction the blue bird had disappeared into, and now she had an idea of what had happened there. The beast had said it wanted to eat an egg, and the bird had led it to the opposite direction of its nest. It was risking its own life, exposing itself to an enemy, in order to protect its family.

"That's so brave..." Lisanna whispered in admiration. She was worried for the animal's safety, but now understood there was hardly anything she could have done from the start. That bird had its own business to take care of, and was probably used to this life. She had got carried away with the idea of becoming a blue bird of happiness, and didn't realize that there was no point in it if it meant putting herself in risk, worrying her family and forcing the animal to cooperate. After all, wasn't her magic a way to share strength with her friends? Then it would make no sense to chase a bird that didn't want to come close in the first place.

Especially when there was already a friend wanting to help right there.

"You came with me all this way, and yet I didn't even pay attention to you." She looked apologetically, gently picking the green bird in her hand. "I'm sorry, that was really mean. You might not be a blue bird of happiness, but I'm sure you're amazing in your own way. Who knows, green birds might be a good omen too. I guess I'll discover that soon with you, right?"

She smiled at her friend, and then tried to get up, but her leg was still in bad shape.

"Ow... I guess I hurt myself more than I thought at that time. Mira-nee will be angry at me. And I need to get back to her soon..."

Then the obvious solution came to her mind and she smiled sheepishly.

"Is it too selfish to ask you to help me again?"

* * *

><p>"Kya! Ouch... W-wait just a second, I-I think I learned how to do it now- Whoa! M-maybe not, I almost hit that tree... I think humans weren't really made for this..."<p>

With long green wings in place of her arms, Lisanna was now clumsily trying to fly through the forest. She was pretty dirty and her hair had many leaves stuck to it due to all the tree she had gone through now, but she was getting slightly better at it. At least, she could find support in the tree branches if she fell.

"I wonder if we're going the right way..." she commented, while sitting in a branch and catching her breath before taking off again. "If I could fly a bit higher, I could try looking for Mira-nee and Elf-nii-chan from above..."

After thinking of it for a while, she decided to try. It would be hard getting above the trees with her skill, but it was probably easier to fly without the entire forest as an obstacle.

"Okay..." the girl took a deep breath. "Let's go!" And her and the bird set off for the top. It took a few tries and she was seriously scared of what would happen if she fell from that height, but eventually she found herself above the forest, free in the clear blue skies.

And it was amazing.

"I'm... really flying..." Up there, without anything around her, she could finally marvel at her new ability. "This is so great! I feel like I can go anywhere!" She beamed. "The forest also looks very different from here."

She looked happily at the bird at her side.

"This is amazing, thank you. We should find Mira-nee and Elf-nii-chan now, but I want to play much more with you one day. I feel so free up here."

They soon found Mirajane and Elfman, which were desperately looking for Lisanna at the time.

"Where the hell have you been!?" Mira's reaction was just as expected, and Lisanna couldn't complain as she knew she deserved the scolding.

"Sorry, Mira-nee... I got carried away. I won't do this again."

"Geez, if you were going to do this there was no point in us coming along." the older sister just kept complaining angrily, but Lisanna knew deep down she had heard and accepted the apology. "Let's go home, you're all dirty. And why are you still flying?"

"I tripped and hurt my leg." Mira looked even more angry now. "I-It's nothing serious though, I think I'm fine now." Lisanna added quickly, and after a moment, noticing the little girl didn't seem to be in pain, the older sister calmed down a bit.

"Don't act as if you would know if it's serious or not." She sighed. "Come, let's me take a look at it. Elfman, you have a first-aid kit, don't you? Bring it here."

"Okay." Came the reply from the boy. He hadn't talked much so far, since Mirajane did most of the screaming, but Lisanna could see that, despite not being as strict as Mira, he had also been worried and was glad to see her okay. Despite the guilt she felt for giving those two all the trouble, she was glad to be around that caring family. In the back of her mind, she remembered the blue bird she chased before. She hoped it had also reunited with his family after leading the beast away. After risking itself like that, it deserved to be happy at home. But she was sure everything was fine. Those were blue birds of happiness, after all, they must have good luck. And even though she could not take over them, she was also satisfied.

There is more than one way to find happiness, after all. As long as she kept growing at her own pace, she was sure she would bring smiles to others in her own way.

* * *

><p>Days had passed, and Lisanna had gone back to the forest several times. But the blue bird business didn't even cross her mind again. What she wanted was to play and learn how to fly with her little green friend back there. By now she had took over its entire body, and it was pretty funny to see it adapted to her size despite being originally from such a tiny creature. She still had to learn how to also turn into the small size, though, but it was just a matter of time and practice, and she had no intention of rushing things. If there was anything she learned at that incident, it was that things hardly go as planned. So she was just going to enjoy her days and enjoy whatever happened next.<p>

It was with that mindset that Lisanna found herself spending some time in the guild, talking to her siblings and just relaxing in general. Erza had yet to come back from a mission, so her sister wasn't picking a fight in the moment, and everyone else seemed calm too. It looked like it would be a very peaceful day.

Which only proved how unpredictable life was, because soon a loud voice would come bursting out of the guild doors.

"An egg! I found an egg!"

And just like that, Lisanna would unknowingly begin yet another quest to find a blue bird.

* * *

><p>Sometimes trying to chase happiness doesn't work,<br>and there are times it comes unexpected.  
>After all, judging the value of things<br>is something very hard to do with a simple look.  
>The girl's wings weren't shiny or beautiful,<br>but it was them that later taught a blue bird how to fly.


End file.
